The Wingate Sandstone in a cliff forming layer features in the Colorado National Monument. The rock was deposited 200 million years ago when the are was a desert much like the modern Sahara. At this location the thickness is 300 feet. The rock is eolian, or wind deposited. Sand piled up on itself over millions of years and eventually got cemented into sandstone. The evidence of dunes can be seen to today in the cross-bedding. The combination of the Wingate and Kayenta sandstone that caps it results in the Monuments. Kayenta Sandstone is very resistant to erosion and protects the Wingate underneath it. In fact most of the weathering of this rock comes from below as water weakens the rock and it collapses.
The Wingate Sandstone in a cliff forming layer features in the Colorado National Monument. The rock was deposited 200 million years ago when the are was a desert much like the modern Sahara. At this location the thickness is 300 feet. The rock is eolian, or wind deposited. Sand piled up on itself over millions of years and eventually got cemented into sandstone. The evidence of dunes can be seen to today in the cross-bedding. The combination of the Wingate and Kayenta sandstone that caps it results in the Monuments. Kayenta Sandstone is very resistant to erosion and protects the Wingate underneath it. In fact most of the weathering of this rock comes from below as water weakens the rock and it collapses.